The Burning Times
by Slytherin-Princess44
Summary: Technically it's not anything about an Asylum. I just something that seemed to fit hell, I should be in an asylum, eh? Bits and pieces of a book I'm writing based on the witch burnings of the 16th century. Main character is Lucy and she meets Barbara, a recorded young woman who was tried and burned as a witch
1. Chapter 1

I want it understood this is my property and under no circumstances do I want anyone copying this to their site (even if you credit me and link to my profile).  
I am currently in the slow process of writing my own fiction novel and so I decided to post bits and pieces here.

**Background info:**  
Some things to understand.. I am very fascinated with everything that has happened concerning the witch trial and burnings. My story is based in 16th century Germany, during the huntings in a highly Catholic town. Since many Christians (though, as part of the religion, aren't supposed to believe in witches) believed in witchcraft, the setting town in my story is no different.  
My main character, Lucy, is a definite Christian, and though she tries to avoid it, somehow witchcraft keeps popping up in her life and she just can't ignore it anymore. Especially when the suspicious activities come in the arrival of a beautiful, rebellious older girl named Barbara. Lucy gets caught up in Barbara's games and is constantly hiding from the men that she used to go to in confidence and pray to.

I'm only posting little sections here and there and, once again, please read and enjoy but do not take my writing.

**~Slytherin_Princess**


	2. Preface & Lucy's First Meeting

_Preface_  
Straw: dry, brittle; feels like needles on bare feet.

Strange. Amidst so much pain, so much heat: nobody would expect to feel numb.

Wood: heavily splintered. Pieces nailed together haphazardly, reinforced just enough so it wouldn't break when stood upon.

Smoke: wafting fumes. Not being able to hear one's own screams. Only pain can be felt. There's nothing worse than suffering the agonizing pain of being roasted alive.

The last things she sees are the foggy tears running down her sister's face and the cross being held by a young bishop at her level.

The Church always won.

Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.

* * *

_Lucy first meeting Barbara_

She stumbled slightly as she hurried down the stone walkway. She hated going the long way around, but it was necessary with all those sick people begging and wasting away in the roads and courtyards. Not that these passageways didn't have their own problems. So many little hide-a-ways for thieves and and scum to hide. But lately it had changed and those thieves and scum could be right out in the open. So much had changed lately...

These days it was more common to find women and their children hiding here. So many people – men mostly – who would like nothing more then to earn some gold at the expense of the accusation and death of a stranger.

Lucy glanced in one of the shadows as she hurried past. A glimmer of light reflected off of several pairs of dull eyes. She barely gave them a second glance. They couldn't help her, and she couldn't help them. All the eyes she ever saw anymore were dull, empty... lifeless.

"_Narren_." She muttered under her breath. "Fools... All of them. How could anyone believe there were such things as witches! Such things as magic!" Her handled fumbled at the collar of her smock and pulled out the small wooden cross her brother had carved for her three years previously.

Her eyes burned for a moment, and a single tear slipped down her pale cheek when she thought of Elias. He was a strong believer and spent his days with the Church tracking down so-called witches. He would betray his own family if it improved his favour with the Prince bishop.

Well, he wasn't a _complete_ traitor to the family. He had yet to turn in mother. There was just something in him that would not let him do it. Lucy prayed to God, to Jesus, that it was because he loved her and would not want to see her burned or harmed in any way.

Well now who was the fool? She knew her brother wasn't turning in their mother because of love! He just had to make sure he would get a nice bag of gold out of it first! And mother had created a high standing with many in the town that she could easily get out of it, meaning Elias would be killed for false treason.  
She pulled her cloak tighter around her shoulders and shivered as a leper in the shadows leered at her and growled, stretching out a grimy hand covered in sores towards her.

Lucy hurried up the stone steps that would take her home. On the way up she tried to rub her feet into the steps to rub off any extra grime from her boots, but what good would it do? The town was filled with nothing but disease, grime and the smell of burning flesh and wood. It was also the only home she knew. What were you supposed to do when you were born into a place already terrorized that they would be the next to be accused? You grew up with the smell of rotting flesh under your nose and you grew to like it and be used to it or else to run away and starve. A rotting home was better than no home.

She edged along, coming to a steep decline. The pathway had been built long before Lucy had been born and no one had bothered to keep it in good shape. Roots and weeds grew up and pushed the stone out of the ground just calling out to people who walked their way. _Come.. Come play... Come fall... Bleed over our ground._.. Small steps at a time. Bending down, she took the steps down the slope, nearly falling to her knees and crawling. It was difficult to do. The path was slick with mud and she could only use one hand to stop herself from falling. The other one just wouldn't budge from the cross around her neck. It was as if it were frozen in place. That was how Lucy had felt lately. Frozen. Frozen in time and yet constantly moving forward.

She was just like the others; never knowing if she'd wake up one morning and find herself being taken to the strappado. She shivered. She was stupid to start thinking of the strappado again! Once it was in here head, it wouldn't go out. Her palms were sweating, her heart racing and it was like her vision swam before her eyes. The fading light in the sky darkened in seconds and her hand wavered till she could barely make out the difference between flesh and stone. Her head felt heavy and foggy, and yet weightless at the same time.

It was during this endless, wrenching moment that her boot caught on one of the roots. Suddenly her world was spinning and knocking around. It was like someone had taken a plank and started hitting her over the head and back with it while she spun in circles. Then ground met her face and she felt the painful tear on her lip and the rough dirt and thorns pushing into her palms.

Lucy lay there, dazed for a few moments.

"Hallo!"

A voice. Decidedly female. It echoed and whirled around her head. It sounded so close, and yet it was fuzzy and distant.

Then suddenly the voice was right next to her ear. Yes, definitely female. A man could not sound that compassionate and have a sharp, piercing sound to his voice.

"Oh no, you poor girl. I've been telling people – or I used to tell them – never to walk this path. Too dangerous I say, but they never listen. And now look!"  
A firm hand lifted Lucy from under her arm and brought her to her feet.

She wiped the blood off her lip and the dirt off on her skirt and curtsied slightly. "_Vielen Dank._" And she looked up in time for brown eyes to meet green.

Lucy had to stop herself from gasping. The girl had to be at least her age or older. Her skin was as light as milk and the tresses curling down her back were just as fair. But it was the piercing green eyes that held Lucy. So many different shades and all of them reflecting, even in the dark shadows of the evening. She wondered how this girl had managed to stay away from any accusations. The accused were always the young and beautiful, or the old and ugly. The average-looking person – like Lucy – had higher chances of survival. But that's what it was all about.. Survival. It wasn't even survival of the fittest! It was survival of the most boring person who didn't have an enemy and was completely Christian and follower of the Holy Spirit.

The poor girl had been talking away, without realizing she lacked an audience. "-but I'm not as great in healing as she was, but I can do my best. She's taught me plenty with herbs."

Lucy twitched. "Herbs?"

"Yes. You know, to help people get better.I can help to heal those cuts and any other injuries."

"I know what they're used for and I don't need help." Lucy snapped, then mollified. "My apologies. Thank you for helping me. I must be going now." And she stepped past the girl and around the corner.

The tumble had taken her to the bottom of the pathway and it was nothing to step over the mud and walk quickly away.

Unfortunately, the girl had other ideas.

"My name is Barbara Gobel. My father was the Father of the Church before he died a few years ago."

"I am sorry to hear that." Yes. Father Gobel. Lucy had known him. He had been a quiet man but when he gave service, his voice had always been full of an inspiring passion. He had passed away from an unknown disease a few winters before and the Prince bishop had declared his death the work of the devil, delivering a blow against Gods son.

"Thank you. He was a good man. I feel like the priests and all the others are taking over things and abusing their power and control now that my father is dead. I don't feel they're living up to what God wants, no matter what they say."

Lucy glanced at Barbara in shock. She was staring straight ahead at their path and her face was slightly flushed. Lucy had never encountered someone who spoke so readily against the Church. Sure, Lucy herself had had doubts over the past few years, but who hadn't? It was a time when you had to be tricky to avoid being caught. But being caught being tricky would be worse. So you had to be trickier.

Barbara noticed Lucy's glance and she smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. Everyone tells me I need to learn to keep my mouth shut. My mouth gets me into trouble a lot, so I've made a lot of enemies."

"That wasn't wise."

"No, I guess not." Barbara said brightly, but her smile dropped a bit.

"How can you be so open?" Lucy asked admiringly. She lowered her voice to a near whisper. "This is not the time when you can speak so freely and have no consequence."

She looked down. "I truly don't know. I've always spoken my mind, and it's not something i'm going to stop doing any time soon."


End file.
